Solar Decathlon 2013

The Solar Decathlon is a biannual competition hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy in which 20 university teams from around the globe compete to design, build and operate the most energy-efficient solar home within budget and building limits. In the 2013 Solar Decathlon, competing against teams from the Czech Republic, Canada, Austria and dozens of American universities, Stevens Institute of Technology finished second in the U.S. and fourth globally!

Stevens' entry, Ecohabit, is a “smart house” created by more than five dozen students with expertise in engineering, design, architecture and computer science. Ecohabit demonstrates that solar power is an affordable and reliable home energy source. With each component of the house featuring intelligence, Ecohabit is not only an efficient, affordable and sustainable residence, but it actually teaches its inhabitants to live more sustainably!

Ecohabit was constructed this summer at the Hoboken waterfront and later reconstructed in Irvine, Cali. for the Solar Decathlon competition. Stevens will now donate Ecohabit to California State University San Marcos (CSUSM) for use as a zero-net energy veterans center on the CSUSM campus, which will serve nearly 900 students!

Similarly, in 2011, Stevens’ “Empowerhouse” won awards in two categories – affordability and hot water – and is now home to a working mother of three in an inner-city neighborhood in Washington, D.C.